Brown, McCain bond over military

When he heard a few years ago that a Republican was planning to run for Ted Kennedy’s Senate seat in deep-blue Massachusetts, Sen. John McCain thought it was “a pretty good joke.”

But after meeting Scott Brown, a longtime member of the Massachusetts Army National Guard, McCain began to take his political ambitions more seriously.

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“The thing that impressed me was his demeanor, his love of country, and frankly his service to the country, and that made me believe that anything was possible,” McCain said.

The Arizona Republican has been campaigning to help Brown keep the Senate seat he won in 2010. On Wednesday, McCain lent his support to Brown as he celebrated a milestone in his 32-year military career.

At an intimate ceremony at the Capitol, McCain presided over Brown’s promotion to colonel in the Army National Guard. He had been a lieutenant colonel.

At Brown’s request, McCain, a military hero and ranking member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, pinned the silver eagle insignia on Brown and administered the oath of office as family members, top military brass and nearly 20 Senate colleagues looked on.

“I never really thought I’d be promoted past captain,” Brown joked to a crowd of nearly 100 people who gathered in the Mansfield Room, just off the Senate chamber. “And I know, John, that you’ve said, in fact, that should never have happened.”

But Brown said serving in the National Guard was something he’s done longer than anything else in his life. And he was honored to be “part of a team,” and “part of the best fighting force in the world.”

“There’s nothing like it to me, as a senator and a soldier, and having that ability to do both jobs,” said Brown, who serves alongside McCain on the Armed Services panel.